Christmas Pasts
by awabblertoday
Summary: AU, 1976, Childhood Lisbons, Chos and Janes Read inside for better summation. 19/45


A/N: You can see how many of my Author's Notes are/probably will be around the same, and I may start to copy and paste them. Being said, it doesn't allow me to own any characters (unless stated otherwise) any more than normal.  
This is an AU featuring Teresa, Kimball and Patrick as children. Still, they belong to Bruno Heller. The following are the (some OCs; I only own them) family members:  
Lisbons: Minnie (mom); James (dad); Teresa (4); Thomas (3); James, Jr. (7 month)  
Chos: Verduna (mom); Artill (dad); Lomera (19); Tate (8); Dabner (5); Dulcie (4); Kimball (3)  
Janes: Madison (mom); Alex (dad); Richard (7); Patrick (7); Samantha (3)

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Fandom: Mentalist Pairing(s): playful Jisbon Words: 2,984 Warning(s): Slight child abuse

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It is December 19, 1976 in Chicago, Illinois. Not only this, but it is the week of Christmas. Four apartment complexes (6 apartments in each) on one side of the road The Crockett, The Chevillette, The Gourd Chappel and The Clisby are decorated in beautiful wreaths and colorful lights. Mr. R.V. Copper owns all these, as well as the Catholic Church, toyshop and day care across the street.

In 6E of The Gourd Chappel, Minnie and James "Jamie" Lisbon get their kids dressed for church. They have a four-year-old girl, a three-year-old boy and a seven-month-  
old boy. Jamie holds the seven-month, James Jr., and Minnie takes the others' hands. They step out and hop in an elevator.

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In a different elevator of the same complex, going down from 4B, is Verduna and Artill Cho, with their children. There are their daughters, nineteen-year-old Lomera, eight-year-  
old Tate and four-year-old Dulcie. There are also their sons, five-year-old Dabner and three-year-old Kimball. Verduna is pregnant again, and the doctor says it is twins. The Cho family is on their way downtown.

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Walking out of 6D from The Chevillette is a little three-year-old girl swinging between her parents. Twin boys are already in the backseat of a dark minivan. Madison, the mom, slides into the passenger seat after buckling Samantha, the little girl, into her car seat. Alex, the dad, slips into the driver's seat. The twins bicker about the surprise destination their dad is driving to.

"Richard, Patrick, settle down." He clears his throat and speaks in a low voice. "You'll now when we get there. Understood?"

"Yes, Sir." They comply and sit straight.

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The Lisbons carefully walk across the street and are greeted by the preacher and the deacons. Deacon Swift bends down to hand Teresa and Thomas each a lollipop.

"Thank you, Mr. Swift." Thomas says with a smile and gives him a hug.

Teresa blushes and hides behind her dad. "Thank you, Mr. Swift." She whispers softly.

"Nothing to it." He smiles and walks into the church.

Deacon Nesota talks with Jamie. Jamie hands over James Jr. to Minnie as he takes a walk around back with the deacon. Teresa unwillingly lets go then follows her mother. At the front desk, Miss Daisy, the children's coordinator, takes the kids. She drops James Jr. off at the nursery, and then takes Thomas and Teresa to Miss Clara and Miss Belle, the preschool teachers.

Teresa immediately recognizes another kid in the room: her best friend Jason. She leaves Thomas at the door and joins Jason by the blocks. Without a spoken word, the two begin constructing a castle. Her brother moves over to the books and picks up a story about Moses as he falls onto a beanbag.

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Stuck in traffic, Patrick and Richard start to play an imagination game. The cars on the other side of the yellow line are moving slightly faster, so the boys are generating stories about the people inside. Beside them at the moment is a light green sedan with a woman driving and two girls in the backseat.

"The girls have red hair." Richard starts. "And the woman has blonde. She looks stressed but the girls are asleep. She's the nanny. No, the babysitter. Only rich people have nannies and that's not a rich person's car. She's the babysitter and the girls just had practice. Because it looks like they're wearing matching shirts. They go to a town school and play, soccer."

Patrick accepts this as an answer and soon the car moves up. It is replaced by a deep red minivan, similar to the one they are riding in but foreign. A Japanese model. He peers in the window. Two Asian adults, three girls and two boys. He thinks a moment then makes a hypothesis.

"Okay, definitely a close-knit family. The dad works for some high-rise people. The kind that if you talk about work in public, they send someone to assassinate you."

Madison interrupts the game. "Where'd you hear a word like that?"

"Like what?"

"The word 'assassinate.' Where'd you get that?"

He looks up to his dad and gulps. "The, uh, radio. Theatre radio."

"Okay." She nods and Patrick continues.

"Right, well the mom is more of a house maker. But she wants her own job. The oldest girl just finished high school and she wants some of her dad's secret money so she can go to college or at least have her own car. The middle girl feels left out of everything. The older one has boys and the younger ones are around the others' ages. The younger girl and both boys are real antsy but the older girl tricked them into playing Quiet Mouse so they could win some sort of prize."

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Halfway downtown, the Chos had to make a U-turn. Verduna remembered she forgot to lock the door. Dabner, Dulcie and Kimball stage a contest to see who can remain the quietest. The latter two are usually the more quiet anyway. Lomera is annoyed through the whole ordeal. They were supposed to go to their dad's factory, grab what he needed then go Christmas shopping. Now it would take extra long.

They finally make it back to the apartment and Artill runs in. Minutes later, he runs back out and turns the van around once more. He takes an alternative route to the factory and it appears in considerably less time. Verduna and the kids stay behind as Artill adjusts his tie and calmly enters the dreary building. After an hour, Dabner starts whining about having to go to the bathroom.

"Ha! You lose!" Kimball cries out, then slaps his hand over his mouth.

Dulcie smiles smugly. "And so do you. Lommie!" She shoves her sleeping sister.

"Wha-hat?" She answers, her voice droning.

"I win, can I gets my candy now?"

"Front flap." She sighs then falls back to sleep.

Dulcie checks the purse pocket and finds a half-melted piece of Laffy Taffy. She shrugs and bites into it. The candy is muggy and it sticks to the roof of her mouth. Kimball grabs the other end from her hand and shoves it in his mouth. The two then proceed to have their hands in gooey knots. Some of the goop finds its way into Lomera's hair, definitely waking her up. They fight about the mess while Verduna takes Dabner around to a closed-in area to do his business. Tate sneaks out and starts walking around.

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The Janes finally arrive at the library. Richard groans but busies himself in the kid area, where a big box TV is showing the moon landing. Patrick takes Samantha to the mystery section. He finds some Sherlock Holmes mini mysteries, a set of schoolyard secrecies. He grabs a few and the two sit at a low table, Patrick opposite of Samantha and near the dress-up box.

"So, Detective Samantha " He drawls in a surprisingly good British accent. "You've decided upon ye'self to unfold the mystery of the stolen lunchbox?"

She giggles then answers in a mimicked accent. "Aye, Patrick Holmes. That I did. Bring to me the case thus far."

She doesn't really know what she means, but the two of them have been using the same lines every time they visit the library, only with different stories. The kids dive into the box for costumes and props. As per usual, Samantha solves the case a little over halfway through. Madison remains at a bench up front. When she spots Alex outside carrying a brown sack, she hurriedly rounds up her kids.

It is almost noon. Samantha and Patrick have finished their game and Richard has begun to watch a documentary on the Hindenberg. The kids gather and leave for the van. Once all settled in, Alex informs them they will be dining for waffles.

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Church service is over. The kids learned about Zechariah and Elizabeth. They prayed for a baby and soon God gave them one. They named him 'John.' The Lisbons cross the street to change out of their nice clothes. In regular play clothes, the family drives downtown for last minute shopping. Each member of the family gets to choose one thing under a set price limit they would like in their stocking.

Downtown, the streets are dimly lit. The seasonal department store is sandwiched between an abandoned library-turned-meth house and a 24/7 breakfast diner. The parking lot is crowded, but they manage to park among other dark minivans. Minnie holds the baby close while the other two dance around to the Christmas music playing from the block speakers.

James Jr. is situated in the shopping buggy and Jamie takes control, trucking off toward the power tools. Minnie takes Teresa and Thomas to the back area. Salespeople are demonstrating how certain toys work and are allowing children to volunteer themselves to test it out. There is a crowd of maybe thirty kids running around. A little bit away, there are benches nearly full of observant mothers. Minnie joins the parents while her kids have fun.

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Artill finds Tate wandering around back and is relieved Verduna and Dabner are looking for her, as well. Lomera, Dulcie and Kimball fix their candy condition and have the backseat clean by the time both parents return. Portfolio in the trunk, Artill takes the wheel. Traffic is low and he easily drives to the crammed department store. Dulcie, Dabner, Kimball and Tate lose themselves in the wonderful toys. Lomera heads off to the makeup section while Artill sneaks out, to the diner next door.

Verduna finds the only available space on any of the benches. All the moms seem to be familiar with this, even though this store was only built over the summer earlier this year. All the moms, that is, except the woman seated at her left. She seems as worried as Verduna. She decides to strike up a conversation.

"Which are yours?"

She smiles proudly. "Little Tommy's got the dancing Santa and Teresa, she's playing with the manger. What about yours?"

Verduna is happy to have someone to talk to. She scans the area. "Ah Dabner is flying the rocket. Dulcie, is, playing in the barn with that boy in the red shirt. Um Tate is brushing the blonde doll's hair. And Kimmy? Oh! Kimmy is playing with your daughter."

"Cute kids. Minnie." She reaches her hand through her purse loop.

"Verduna." She shakes her hand.

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The kids are happily racing around the play area. There are maybe ten girls cradling a doll and about ten boys playing with the dancing figures. Thomas begins to mimic the Santa and soon, many kids join in. Teresa is setting up the manger like in her Bible story. She has Joseph and Mary and Baby Jesus in the hay. She looks back, thinking of what is missing. A boy about her age walks over and sets down three more dolls.

"The wise men!" Teresa exclaims. "That's what was missing!"

Without introducing themselves, the kids play dolls and make-believe. Tate gets bored fast. Most of the toys are preschool-age. She begins to leave when she trips over a piano. A small one like Schroeder played in the Peanuts comics. Tate sits down and tries to teach herself how to play.

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Next door, the Janes are finishing their waffles. Patrick and Richard added scrambled eggs to theirs and Samantha had chocolate chips in hers. Alex walks over to the bar area to pay the check. Instead, he runs into an old friend. After a few minutes, Richard wanders over. He catches some Asian guy he's never seen before handing his dad a chunky manila envelope. He overhears something about a bankruptcy and an orphanage. The boy is still standing there when Alex turns around.

"What you lookin' at, boy?" He groans.

"The weird white things in that jar." He points to a jar of pickled eggs sitting on the counter.

"You sure you weren't watching me and that stranger talkin' about his dad, the fire chief?"

"Oh, is that who it " He clasps his hand over his mouth. "I mean, no, I "

"Let's go." He takes his son's arm and glares at the rest of the family.

They know too well what's about to happen. The kids can't stop him and his wife is scared. Without paying, the crew stands up and walks through the door. Madison offers an apologetic glance to the bartender and the kind man catches it. He's known Alex Jane and all things about him since the family moved to Chicago in 1973. Alex is driving with Madison in the passenger side. The kids sit silently in back.

Once they arrive back home, Alex is obviously a bit drunk, although no one will challenge him on it. He grabs each of the boys' hands and drags them into the bathroom. He locks the door. Samantha runs toward them, but Madison holds her back. Behind the closed door, Alex cuffs Patrick to the headboard on the bed and Richard to the air condition unit. He doesn't seem to recall which twin had created the spectacle in town. Instead, he pulls out his belt and begins to pace. A few silent minutes pass. He then folds his belt where the buckle is hanging out.

He holds his weapon of choice above his head and it towers into a pressuring thud, smacking Patrick's chest. A whimper is heard from across the room as Patrick struggles to hold back a shudder. The studded leather strikes Richard's soft tissued shoulder and he cannot hold his howl. He is beat once more, in his stomach; and once more, grazing his throat. Patrick cannot bear the sight. He notices his father growing more tipsy. He lets out a scream, claiming it to be of a migraine.

Alex declares he has the perfect remedy for a headache of this magnitude: a few healthy doses of discipline. Patrick shuts his eyes and dreams of a happier time, when his aunt Adli was still alive. She and Alex were very close as children, and Patrick has already decided her untimely death was his father's trigger into becoming how he is. He remembers 1972, 1973 and especially 1974. She passed away a little before Christmas that year. He opens his eyes as the memories fade.

The lashes have momentarily ceased. Alex is passed out on the floor, drowning in alcoholic vomit. Patrick wriggles out of the cuffs, which were not fully fastened in the first place. He keeps quiet as he helps his brother out of entrapment. They rejoin the family in the kitchen. Madison tries what she can do, but it is of no use. She finds the telephone and dials Dr. Minnie's office. After a short assessment of the patients, the dean of medicine contacts the specified doctor's pager.

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Minnie Lisbon is having a nice chat with Verduna Cho when her pager chimes. She looks to see who it is, then abruptly stands.

"Could you watch my children until my husband gets here? My boss needs me."

"Of course, but where do you work that could be"

"Hospital."

Minnie describes her husband to a T then runs off to find him. Once she locates Jamie, she tells him about the emergency. He leaves the baby clothes aisle to watch his other kids by the toys. Minnie rushes out in the cold, forgetting her coat by the other moms, and whistles for a taxi. She reaches her hospital in no time flat. She finds twin boys, a little girl and a worried mother in Clinic Room 5. Always Room 5. Madison remains with Samantha in the waiting room, as per usual. Richard sits up on one examining table while Patrick steps up to the other.

"Ricky, what happened this time?"

Richard slowly removes his top, bearing old cuts mixed with newer, harder slashes. "I was playing football outside and I slid down this trap thing that the trees cover up. And the branches scraped me up real bad."

"Yes, I see that. We'll have to be even extra careful." She consoles him. "Last time, didn't you get too close to a bee hive?"

"Yes, wait, no." He stutters. "That was time before last. Last time the dog in the junkyard chased me and Patty when we went in there to get stuff for our derby cars."

"Ah. All better."

She had kept him talking while she dressed the wound. He hadn't felt a thing. She adds an extra cast layer and sends him on his way with a lollipop. Ricky smiles back to her widely, then tones it down as he looks to Patrick. His brother gives him a reassuring half-  
smirk as the door opens then closes. Minnie walks over to lock the door then twirls to look over Patrick.

"It was your father, wasn't it?"

"Hypothetically." He answers, as always.

"Okay, we are in a hypothetical world. What did he do?"

"The Grizzly was talking with this new guy at the bar." Patrick had nicknames for all the people in his life when he delves into his hypothetical world. He only shares this with Minnie and Samantha. "And the Blanket came over to him."

"Did the Grizzly do anything then?"

"No, he waited till his cubs were out of the cavern and on the train."

"What happened when they all got to the forest?"

"He locked his boy cubs up with him and he tied them down."

"The Lamb wasn't there?"

"She was with the Panda. In the other room." Patrick sighs as he feels Minnie patching him up with Iodine. "So, he got out the licorice and got at his cubs with it."

"Did he have a lot of honey?"

"Yeah, too much. Some of the honey fell out and that's when the Grizzly stopped coming at the cubs."

Minnie had been having conversations like this with Patrick since the day after Christmas in 1974. She was the only doctor willing to probe into the theoretical mind. The Grizzly is the boy's father, as he is overbearing and almost always the reason these boys arrive in the hospital to begin with. The Blanket is the boy's brother, since he always seemed to be covering up more than he was letting on. The Lamb is his sister, because she is sweet and innocent but is starting to understand more about what is happening. The Panda is his mom, given that she cares for her young but cannot stand up to the great Grizzly.

Rather than allowing the kids to be placed in a dangerous situation, Dr. Minnie cals her husband to arrange the guest rooms. They have set aside two guest rooms for house call patients. Alex is in a rage and the doctor "cannot in good conscience" let those kids go back. Minnie has offered the special treatment to this family time and time again, each time met with refusal. However, this time, it is not an offer. It is an order.

It is around suppertime when the Janes and Dr. Minnie arrives there.. The other Lisbons are already home, fixing a nice meal. Madison walks out to the terrace with Jamie. Minnie has the Jane kids set up in a room to themselves. Samantha suddenly pipes up when Minnie leaves to find her kids.

"Why's Daddy do 'at?"

"Daddy misses his sissy." Richard clues her in as he enters the kitchen.

"His sissy? Who dat?"

"You 'member those pictures you found in your closet that one time? In that dusty book?"

"Yeah." She nods with a slight shudder. "Daddy was upset that I finded 'em."

"That was of him and his friend Jamie and his sissy Adli." Richard answers.

"My daddy's name is Jamie." A young girl appears in the doorway, half-hiding from the new kids.

"Hi, I'm Ricky." The boy ignores her and quickly changes the subject from his family's history. "We're gonna stay here awhile."

"I'm Tessa. How come?"

"Cause Dr. Minnie says so."

Teresa nods. "Will you be here for Christmas?"

"Christmas! Christmas! Christmas!" Samantha starts chanting, climbing up on the bed to jump on it.

"Maybe." Ricky shrugs.

"So is it only you two?"

"Me and Sammy and Patty."

"Is Patty your sister?"

A laugh interrupts them from the hall. Teresa turns to face him, only to see a boy who looks just like the boy she is talking to already. The only differences are his hair is lighter and his eyes are blue, while Ricky's eyes are hazel. Teresa stares at them confused. Thomas just then runs over to Teresa and notices the two lookalike boys and the girl his age jumping on the bed.

"Hi, I'm Tommy."

"I'm Ricky."

"I'm Patty."

"I'm Tessa."

Tommy then joins Sammy on the bed and Ricky becomes disinterested, leaving the area as a whole. Patrick moves over to Teresa with a smile.

"You're pretty."

Teresa blushes and shakes her head, hair falling over her face. Patrick stays by her side.

"Like a princess." He beams. "Princess Tessa. And I'm Prince Patty. Wanna go find the castle and find the treasure?"

"I don't have a castle." Teresa looks at him strangely.

"Sure you do." He explains. "Castles is the best part of a house. It's where grown-ups put the cookies."

Teresa grins then, understanding Patrick's imaginary world. "Let's go, Prince."

Patrick grabs her hand. "Let's go, Princess!"

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][][][][][] That was wildly AU, but I see the families behaving like this when they were younger. Sorry about the whole abusive thing. It seemed like an Alex Jane thing that would lead the kids to Doctor Minnie. I do not approve of child abuse, domestic abuse, or abuse in general. At all. [][][][][][  



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